Society and Social Evolution
Society is the civilised and organized section of humanity. Its members consciously relating to it create Social consciousness which pervades all earth as air pervades the atmosphere. It is a self-conscious entity and is self-existent. It is capable of self-creation through self-conception, self-limitation as well as self-absorption. It progresses through the instrumentality of the individual by raising its existence from subconscious to consciousness in the individual. Society that becomes conscious in the individual at first gradually becomes fully conscious as the pioneering individual. Today we can say several nations are thus civically conscious. Of some countries we may even say they are scientifically conscious. The Indian society can well be called as one conscious of the Spirit. Society progresses through change, by changing its mode of production. (It also changes physically, psychologically, spiritually, but only economic change lends itself to be explained here.) Such changes alter the social structure. Often these changes were one of evolution while they were revolutionary in other instances. We know of the changes from agriculture to manufacturing to services as one major path society has chosen. The law of change is to become conscious and then pass on to organization. Society becomes conscious of natural potentials, human resourcefulness, the organizations it can create and puts all these to its own purposes of advancement. Once the society outgrows the structures it has created, it discards them or destroys them. In this march it has moved from physicality to vitality to mentality. At each level – physical, vital, mental – it expedites its growth to the outside limits possible by entering the subtle plane through thought, feeling and sensation. Its results are accomplished by society entering the causal plane through values aiming at perfection. Started at the level of village organization, society evolved up to the nation-state in the 19th century. Now the nation-state is being outgrown and humanity is moving to the creation of a global society. In earlier times, society discovered natural resources within the earth. Now human resources are being discovered in the Mind, creating new organizations which make possible a higher way of life. This social progression has been achieved by destroying the ego at the physical, vital, mental levels. The death of 60 million people in the Second World War has helped humanity to overcome its physicality. The unification of people of all nationalities within America’s 50 states and the integration of 25 nations within the EU have succeeded in outgrowing the vital ego. Progress is also being achieved at the level of outgrowing the mental ego and its possessiveness. This is indicated by the fact that information is being so freely disseminating and the principle of “grow by giving” is becoming prevalent on the Internet as the practice of giving free services to earn more. As Nature strives for the survival of the species, what matters to Society is Itself and only Itself. To Society NO individual ever counts. The laws of social development are governed by consciousness, organization, subtlety and Self-determination. Society subserves the cosmos in its evolution – Cosmic evolution Category:Society